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Topic: Excerpts from Srimad Bhagavatam (Read 208402 times)

Sri Shukadeva said: 'Oh best of the Kurus, the Supreme Lord Ananta Deva very pleased with the worship of Citraketu the king of the Vidyadharas, then replied. The Supreme Lord said:

'From directly seeing Me and with the prayer that Narada and Angira have disclosed to you, you now have attained perfection oh King. I as the Supreme Soul of all, as the cause of the manifestation, have expanded in different forms and exist in both the eternal forms of the spiritual sound vibrations and the Supreme Brahman. The living entity expanded into the world and the world expanded within the living entity. These two,the world and the living entity, are pervaded by Me as also made by Me. A person sleeping sees in his dream the entire world within himself, but upon awaking he finds himself lying down somewhere. Likewise one must consider the different states of consciousness and conditions of life of the living entities as manifestations of the illusory potency of the Self, knowing which one should always remember their Supreme Creator,the Source and Witness. Know Me as that all-pervading Soul, as the Supreme Spirit free from the modes of matter by whom the sleeping bewildered person at that time is able to recognize what belongs to the dream and what to his happiness. I am the Knower of all the states of consciousness,and beyond all of them.

The living entity, having forgotten about this spiritual nature of his Self, thinking he has separated existence gets immersed in a materially conditioned life and wanders from one body to the next, from one death to another. Achieving in this world a human birth offers one the chance to arrive at self-realization with the support of this spiritual knowledge and wisdom, but they who fail to pick up that knowledge will never find peace and happiness. Thinking of the trouble of toiling in this world and then achieving the opposite of what was intended - and then remembering how one is freed from fear by ridding oneself of one's desire for material things, one should, thus knowing better, desist from that karmic desire. Husband and wife being materially motivated perform activities for the sake of their happiness and to be free from misery, but these actions have no effect because they do not put an end to the transitory happiness and distress ,that follow one another. Those who consider themselves very smart but in the end get the opposite of what they wanted, find it extremely difficult to understand and hard to grasp what it means to be of progress with the soul and to exist apart from the three states of unconsciousness, sleep and waking. Someone who personally experienced this Truth or has understood it from listening to others, should free himself from materialism, and by dint of his own power of judgment in spiritual knowledge and wisdom,fully satisfied, become My devotee.

The realization of the of the oneness of the individual soul and the transcendence of the Lord, constitutes - all things considered - the ultimate goal of life for capable and intelligent human beings who unite in yoga.

If you with faith, not concluding differently, accept these words of Mine oh King, you will soon find your perfection in the full awareness of spiritual knowledge and its wisdom.'

Sometimes, a virtue turns out to be a vice and a vice - by providence,or Vedic instruction - turns out to be a virtue. Respecting the regulative principles one is thus faced with the fact that the distinction between what is good and bad is factually effaced by them.

The same activities that would degrade an elevated person do not cause falldown for those who are already fallen. Indeed, one who is lying on the ground cannot possibly fall further. The material association that is dictated by one's own nature is considered good.

Whatever one desists from one is freed from - this is for human beings the foundation of natural pious living that takes away the suffering, fear and delusion.

When one presumes the objects stimulating the senses to be good, a person will develop attachment as a consequence, from that attachment lust originates and because of that lust,to enjoy at will,there is quarrel among people.

Because of quarreling there is the anger that is difficult to handle and because of anger there is ignorance; and thus someone's broad consciousness is quickly narrowed and overtaken by darkness.

Oh saintly Uddhava, a living being bereft that way of clear understanding becomes empty-headed so that, as a consequence having fallen away from his goals in life, he - just like dull matter - is as good as dead.

Going after the senses in this way, one, vainly living the life of a tree, fails in knowing oneself and others, so that one's breathing is nothing more than pumping air.

The awards promised in the [karma-kanda part of the] scriptures are for man not the highest good; they are merely enticements to create a taste for the ultimate good [upasana-kanda],it is simply like medicine.

From the moment they are born, mortals develop a mind of attachment to their family, their vital functions and the objects of their desire, because of which they loose sight of the interest of their Soul.

Why would the intelligent ones [the Vedic authority] encourage those, who on the path of danger blind to their real interest in submission to karmic actions land in darkness, to further engage in such attachments.

Persons with perverted intelligence do not understand this actual purpose of Vedic knowledge and instead propagate as the highest Vedic truth the flowery statements of the Vedas that promise material rewards. Those in actual knowledge of the Vedas never speak in that way.

Those who are lusty, miserly and greedy take the flowers of karmic sacrifices for the fruit of realization; bewildered by the fire they suffocate from the smoke and do not realize their true identity.

Armed with their expressions My dear, they do not know Me who is seated within their heart and from whom this universe generated that is also Me. In their self-indulgence they are like people staring into fog.

Those who are sworn to sense gratification cannot understand the confidential conclusion of Vedic knowledge as explained by Me. Taking pleasure in violence, they cruelly slaughter innocent animals in sacrifice for their own sense gratification and thus worship demigods, forefathers and leaders among ghostly creatures. Such passion for violence, however, is never encouraged within the process of Vedic sacrifice.

In their hearts they all - like business men investing their wealth - imagine to achieve in a world as pleasing as it sounds, but which is as unreal as a dream.Established in the mode of passion, goodness or ignorance they worship the gods and others headed by Indra who likewise delight in passion, goodness and ignorance, but Me they do not worship properly.

They think: 'When we worship the demigods with sacrifices here, we will enjoy heaven, and when that has ended, turn back to earth in wealth in a fine family.' With their minds thus bewildered by the flowery words of the Vedas they nevertheless, as proud and most greedy men, are not attracted to My topics and the Truth.

The Vedas, divided into three divisions, ultimately reveal the true understanding of the soul,the true Self. The Vedic seers and mantras, however, deal in esoteric terms, and I also am pleased by such confidential descriptions.

The transcendental sound of the Vedas is very difficult to comprehend and manifests on different levels within the praṇa, senses and mind. This Vedic sound is unlimited, very deep and unfathomable, just like the ocean.

The groundless, changeless Absolute of endless potencies that is My nature, is represented within the living beings in the form of sound vibrations, the way a lotus stalk is represented by a single strand of fiber.

Just as a spider brings forth from its heart its web and emits it through its mouth, the Supreme manifests Himself as the reverberating primeval vital air, comprising all sacred Vedic meters and full of transcendental pleasure. Thus the Lord, from the ethereal sky of His heart, creates the great and limitless Vedic sound by the agency of His mind, which conceives of variegated sounds such as the sparśas. The Vedic sound branches out in thousands of directions, adorned with the different letters expanded from the syllable om: the consonants, vowels, sibilants and semivowels. The Veda is then elaborated by many verbal varieties, expressed in different meters, each having four more syllables than the previous one. Ultimately the Lord again withdraws His manifestation of Vedic sound within Himself.The Vedic meters are Gayatri, Uṣṇik, Anuṣṭup, Bṛhati, Pankti, Triṣṭup, Jagati, Aticchanda, Atyaṣṭi, Atijagati and Ativiraṭ.

In the entire world no one but Me actually understands the confidential purpose of Vedic knowledge. Thus people do not know what the Vedas are actually prescribing in the ritualistic injunctions of karma-kaṇḍa, or what object is actually being indicated in the formulas of worship found in the upasana-kaṇḍa, or that which is elaborately discussed through various hypotheses in the jnana-kaṇḍa section of the Vedas.

I am the One enjoined, I am the object of worship.

It is I who am presented as various philosophical hypotheses, and it is I alone who am then refuted by philosophical analysis. The transcendental sound vibration thus establishes Me as the essential meaning of all Vedic knowledge. The Vedas, elaborately analyzing all material duality as nothing but My illusory potency, ultimately completely negate this duality and achieve their own satisfaction.

Narada Muni said: 'Prahlada, even though he was but a small boy, considered every blessing that came with his bhakti yoga an impediment on the path and this he with a smile told the Lord of the Senses.

Prahlada said: 'Please do not allure me. Because of my Asura birth I have a propensity for lusting over all those material blessings. It was out of fear for such material association that I, desiring liberation, for the sake of complete detachment have taken to Your shelter. Oh Lord, You send Your devoted servant into this world of desire in order to put his character to a test, for this lust being the root cause of one's wandering around here, is found in the heart of everyone oh Master. It does not work differently with You oh Guru of the universe so kind to everyone, for is someone who desires any material benefits, not more a merchant than a servitor? Someone who for himself expects material benefits from his spiritual master is not really a servant, nor is the master really of service who - for his own prestige - wants to bestow material benefits upon his servant. There is, as far as I am concerned in my full devotion for You, no question whatsoever of any desire, nor do You as a real master foster any further motive for our sake like a king might have with his subject. And if You want to fulfill one of my desires, then I pray for Your benediction, oh Lord of All Blessings, that no desire for any form of material happiness will grow in my heart.O my Lord, because of lusty desires from the very beginning of one?s birth, the functions of one?s senses, mind, life, body, religion, patience, intelligence, shyness, opulence, strength, memory and truthfulness are vanquished. Only when one gives up all the desires that one in one's human association finds in one's mind, one is fit for an opulence equal to Yours, oh Lotus-eyed Lord. Oh Master of all Opulences, oh Original Person, oh Lord in the form of Nrisimha, oh Supreme One, oh Absolute Truth, oh Great Soul and Soul of all souls, let me offer You my respectful obeisances.'

The Supreme Lord said: 'Those persons who like you are exclusively devoted to Me do not desire any benedictions from Me in this world or in the next. Nevertheless you may until the end of Manu's reign enjoy all the opulences of the Daitya rule out here. Devote yourself to My pleasing stories, be absorbed in Me who resides in your heart as the One present within all living beings, worship in [yoga] uniting your consciousness the Lord who is the enjoyer of all sacrifices and give up your fruitive activities. By the means of pious actions forsaking your impiety, by forsaking the body attachment,after spreading your reputation throughout even the worlds of the gods, you will, freed from all attachment,rapidly, turn back to Me.Anyone who chants these prayers you offered to Me, any human being who remembers both Me and you, will in due course of time become free from the bondage of his karma.

Prahlada said: 'I pray for the following benediction of You, oh Lord of Benedictions, oh Supreme Controller. My father, not knowing Your strength and supremacy, had because of a heart polluted by anger a false notion of You oh master and guru of all worlds. He considered You the murderer of his brother and condemned You. Thus he was towards me, Your devotee, of the greatest sin. May my father be purified from that greatest and most difficult to overcome sin, even though he was immediately purified when You cast Your glance upon him, oh Father full of mercy.'

The Supreme Lord said: 'With the purification of your father, twenty-one of your forefathers in total have been purified oh sinless one. Because you, oh saintly boy, took your birth from him in this dynasty, you are indeed the purifier of the dynasty. Wherever and whenever there are My devotees who full of peace and equipoise, with the best qualities are equally graceful towards all, everyone will be purified, even when it concerns the worst of societies. They will never, in whatever way, act violently towards all the higher or lower living beings oh King of the Daityas, because they, in their love for Me, have forsaken all material aspirations. Persons in this world following in your footsteps become My pure devotees. You are of My devotees truly the best example.

An intelligent person should therefore reject all bad association and instead take up the association of saintly devotees, whose words cut off the excessive attachment of one's mind.My devotees fix their minds on Me and do not depend upon anything material. They are always peaceful, endowed with equal vision, and free from possessiveness, false ego, duality and greed.Oh most fortunate one, these greatly fortunate souls are constantly discussing My stories and My glories,that have the power to completely eradicate all the sins. They who, faithfully dedicated to Me, hear, chant and respectfully take them to heart, will attain devotion and love.What more remains to be accomplished for the perfect devotee after achieving such Love and Devotion for Me,the Supreme Absolute Truth, whose qualities are innumerable and who am the embodiment of all ecstatic experience?

'From Manyu, the son of Vitatha [the name Bharadvaja carried because he was given to Bharata], there were the sons Brihatkshatra, Jaya, Mahavirya, Nara and Garga. Nara had a son called Sankriti. From Sankriti there were Guru and Rantideva, oh scion of Pandu. The glories of Rantideva are sung in this world and the next.

Subsisting on that what fate provided he [Rantideva] took pleasure in distributing to others whatever grain of food he had. Being very poor he with all his family members lived most soberly and had to suffer a lot. One morning when forty-eight days had passed and he even was deprived of drinking water, he happened to receive water and different foodstuffs prepared with ghee and milk. While the family was shaky because of the thirst and hunger they suffered, that very moment a brahmin guest arrived who also liked to eat. Rantideva conceived of the Lord as residing in each and everyone and thus he with great respect and faith gave him his share of the food. After the brahmin had eaten he departed. When he had divided the food for the family and was just about to eat, someone else arrived, a sudra(lowborn, laborer), whom he, thinking of the Lord, gave the food that was reserved for him, the king. After the sudra had left yet another guest arrived who was surrounded by dogs. He said: 'Oh King, please provide me and my hungry dogs with food!'

He, the one in power, honored them with his obeisances and with great respect gave all the food that was left over to the dogs and their master. Of the food only the drinking water remained and that too had to satisfy some outcaste who, arriving there when the king was about to drink, asked him: 'I am just lowborn, but please give me some water!'

Hearing the pitiable words of the exhausted man he, being deeply moved, compassionately spoke the following nectarean words: 'I do not desire to attain the greatness of the eight perfections of the Supreme Lord,siddhis, or the cessation of repeated births. I accept all hardship in my staying among all the embodied living beings so that they are freed from their unhappiness. Handing over my water to save this poor soul struggling for his life, I am freed from all the hunger, thirst, fatigue and shaking of my body, as also from all the poverty, distress, lamentation, depression and bewilderment!' Thus expressing himself that sober, kindhearted ruler gave the drinking water to the outcaste, even though he himself was on the verge of death because of his thirst. Then the controllers of the three worlds, the gods who grant those who desire the fruits all results, manifested themselves before him in their true identities,because they in their previous appearances in the form of the brahmin, the man with the dogs, the sudra and the outcaste, all had been creations of the illusory energy of Vishnu. Being true to them as someone without material aspirations for any benefit or possessions, he offered them his obeisances while he concentrated his mind upon Vasudeva, the Supreme Lord and the Supreme Self as the ultimate goal. Having nothing in his mind but purely being of service,focussing his consciousness on the Supreme Controller oh King, the illusory energy of the [three] material qualities meant nothing more to him than a dream. All the ones associated with his lead, all the followers of Rantideva, became first-class yogis fully devoted to Lord Narayana.

You are the One overseeing this cosmic creation, the One who is not attached to being the master, nor do You, although You appear as a human being, suffer from hunger, thirst and fatigue. Nor is the vision of You, who are the seer of everything, ever polluted by the material qualities. I offer You, the unattached and pure, profound witness, my respects. Having forsaken one's identification with the body, one must, at the end of one's time [of living], with a devotional attitude concentrate one's mind upon You who are transcendental to the material qualities. This forsaking constitutes the perfection of the practice of yoga as explained by the almighty Lord Brahma. A person driven by desire thinks in fear about the present and future of his children, wife and wealth, but anyone who knows about the hopelessness of this vehicle of time, considers such endeavors only a waste of time because the body is lost in the end. Therefore our master, oh Lord in the beyond, I pray that we by dint of the yoga unto You very soon may forsake this fixed notion of 'I' and 'mine' about the banality of this vehicle of time, this illusory reality of Yours which is so difficult to overcome, so that we may realize our original nature.'

Even though He is free from the modes, unborn and unmanifest, the Supreme Lord transcendental to the material world enters the material qualities of His illusory energy and accepts obligations and responsibilities,apparently acting like a conditioned soul. The qualities of sattva, rajas and tamas belong to material nature and not to the Supreme Soul oh King. For the Self there is no question of their combined prominence or decay. According to the time of their prevalence one with the mode of sattva [goodness] finds the devas and the rishis [the gods and sages], with the mode of rajas [passion] one encounters Asuras [the unenlightened ones] and with the mode of tamas [inertia] one is faced with Yakshas and R?kshasas [ghosts and demons]. The Supreme Lord is present in everyone?s heart, fostering the reactions of sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa. The all-pervading Absolute exists within the heart of every living being, and a Wise man can perceive how He is present there to a large or small extent. Just as one can understand the supply of fire in wood, the water in a waterpot, or the sky within a pot, a thoughtful man can understand how much the Supreme Lord is present in someone's heart by seeing his actions. When the Supreme creates different types of bodies, offering a particular body to each living entity according to his character and fruitive actions, the Lord revives all the qualities of material nature - sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa. Then, as the Supersoul, He enters each body and influences the qualities of creation, maintenance and annihilation, using sattva-guṇa for maintenance, rajo-guṇa for creation and tamo-guṇa for annihilation.O great King, the Supreme Lord, the controller of the material and spiritual energies, who is certainly the creator of the entire cosmos, creates the Time to allow the material energy and the living being to act within the limits of time. Thus the Supreme is never under the time factor nor under the material energy.Although the Supreme Lord is beyond modes of nature, He seems to favors demigods,since they are influenced with sattva only. In this way, the asuras (demons), who are influenced by tamo-guṇa, are annihilated. But this all happens because of combination of gunas and the time factor. The Supreme Lord induces the time to act in different ways, but He is never partial. Rather, His activities are glorious, and therefore He is called Urusrava.

Sage Narada said:This body subject to insults, praise, honor and dishonor is the product of a lack of discrimination between the primal state of material nature [pradhana] and the supreme [position of the transcendental witness] oh King. Oh earthly ruler, because of this the living beings in this world suffer from the misconception of 'I' and 'mine', just as from the reproach and punishment associated with it. Living with this false conception one thinks that the destruction of bodies is the same as the destruction of living beings. The misconception [including reproaching Him and the fear for punishment] is there not because of Him [but because of being without Him] who is the beatitude of detachment and emancipation in person. How could there from His side, the side of the Soul of all, the Supreme One and Highest Control be any question of violence? Therefore, whether one is of a constant enmity, of devotion, of fear, of affection or of lusty desires, one should stay connected with the Lord and not care about anything else.A larva checked by a bee in a comb may be filled with anxiety and resentment, but because of that bee attain the same form. Just the same one may [like S'is'upala and Dantavakra] with Krishna, who as the Supreme Lord assumed a human form, [even] be freed from one's sins by constantly thinking of Him in enmity. Moved by lust, hatred, fear, affection and devotion many who united their mind in the Lord consequently gave up on sin and thus attained their destination. Oh King, the gop?s realized this by their lusty desires, Kamsa by his fear, S'is'upala and other kings by their hatred, Krishna's family members by their kinship, You [Pandavas] by your affection for Him and we through our bhakti. Not to be someone like Vena, who couldn't adopt any of these five forms of respect in regard of the Original Person, one must fix one's mind on Krishna in one of these ways.Canto 7 Chapter 1

Jewell/Friends,The Beauty and enchantment of the Lord's sport as baby Krishna are so attractive...We have these wonderful scenes from The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna:1.Incarnation of God"The rishis followed the path of jnana. Therefore they sought to realize Brahman, the Indivisible Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute. But those who follow the path of devotion seek an Incarnation of God, to enjoy the sweetness of bhakti. The darkness of the mind disappears when God is realized. In the Purana it is said that it was as if a hundred suns were shining when Rama entered the court. Why, then, weren't the courtiers burnt up? It was because the brilliance of Rama was not like that of a material object. As the lotus blooms when the sun rises, so the lotus of the heart of the people assembled in the court burst into blossom."As the Master uttered these words, standing before the devotees, he suddenly fell into an ecstatic mood. His mind was withdrawn from external objects. No sooner did he say, "the lotus of the heart burst into blossom", than he went into deep samadhi. He stood motionless, his countenance beaming and his lips parted in a smile.

2.ekangi prema.GIRISH(to the Master): "Sir, what is ekangi prema?" MASTER: "It means one-sided love. For instance, the water does not seek the duck, but the duck loves water. There are other kinds of love: sadharani, samanjasa, and samartha. In the first, which is ordinary love, the lover seeks his own happiness; he doesn't care whether the other person is happy or not. That was Chandravali's attitude toward Krishna. In the second, which is a compromise, both seek each other's happiness. This is a noble kind of love. But the third is the highest of all. Such a lover says to his beloved, 'Be happy yourself, whatever may happen to me.' Radha had this highest love. She was happy in Krishna's happiness. The gopis, too, had attained this exalted state."Do you know who the gopis were? Ramachandra was wandering in the forest where sixty thousand rishis dwelt. They were very eager to see Him. He cast a tender glance at them. According to a certain Purana, theywere born later on as the gopis of Vrindavan." A DEVOTEE: "Sir, who maybe called an antaranga?" MASTER: "Let me give an illustration. A natmandir has pillars inside and outside. An antaranga is like the inside pillars. Those who always live near the guru are the antarangas. (To Mahimacharan) "The jnani wants neither a form of God nor His Incarnation. While wandering in the forest, Ramachandra saw a number of rishis. They welcomed Him to their asrama with great love and said to Him: 'O Rama, today our life is blessed because we have seen You. But we know You as the son of Dasaratha. Bharadvaja and other sages call You a Divine Incarnation; but that is not our view. We meditate on the Indivisible Satchidananda.' Rama was pleased with them and smiled.Here are two wonderful presentations of songs on Lord Krishna:1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRTkOpKumMs'Krishna Nee Begane Vaaro' (Krishna,do come swiftly)-Beautiful presentation of the song of Vyasa Raya on Udipi Baby Krishna set in the enchanting Raga Yamuna Kayani...The Singing is top notch,the Dance is wonderfully expressive and the paining depicts the Tri-banga(bent in three places) aspect -As Sri Ramakrishna beautifully said that this is the Love aspect that bends the rigid frame of the body and makes it so flexible...All the 3 Artists do a marvellous job and the Triveni (confluence of 3 Rivers)is wonderful.

2.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9qMm3Zp2g8'Alai Paayuthey'(My mind is tossed like a wave)-This is a beautiful composition of the great devotee /composer ootthukkaadu Venkatasubhia Kavi...with English subtitles to follow the song....The Raga is Kaanada...all presented in fusion form but well done...No gimmickry.Namaskar

Indeed,how pure and deep was the Love of Gopis toward Sri Krishna! And for how long is this Love inspiration for all of us!His life is full with such wonders and mysteries!

And so true,it is not important how we approach Him,our own Heart and Soul. Either through personal aspect or through impersonal one,so long we are going toward the Truth.

Radha and Krishna

Was it not he once in Brindavan? Woods divine to our yearning,Memorable always! flowers, delight on the tree-tops burning,Grasses his herds have grazed and crushed by his feet in the dancing,Yamuna flowing with song, through the greenness always advancing,Unforgotten remind; for his flute with its sweetness ensnaringSounds in our ears in the night and our souls of their teguments baringHales us out naked and absolute, out to his woodlands eternal,Out to his moonlit dances, his dalliance sweet and supernal. . . .Even an hour of the soul can unveil the Unborn, the Everlasting,Gaze on its mighty Companion; the load of mortality casting,Mind hushes stilled in eternity; waves of the Infinite wanderThrilling body and soul and its endless felicity squander;All world-sorrow is finished, the cry of the parting is over;Ecstasy laughs in our veins, in our heart is the heart of the Lover.

The brahmin Jada Bharata said: 'My dear King,lacking in experience using the terms of the experienced ones, does not make you more experienced! Considering the Absolute Truth these matters of mundane and social behavior are not discussed by the intelligent ones.Talks of the relationship between the master and the servant, the king and the subject and so forth are simply talks about mundane activities. People interested in these activities which are expounded in the Vedas are intent on performing material sacrifices for their own benefit,or for the benefit of their household. For such people, spiritual advancement is definitely not manifest. A dream becomes automatically known to a person when he wakes up as false and immaterial, and similarly one eventually realizes that material happiness in this life or the next, on this planet or a higher planet, is insignificant. When one realizes this, the Vedas, although an excellent source, are insufficient to bring about direct knowledge of the truth.As long as someone's mind is under the control of the mode of passion, goodness or ignorance, actions - auspicious or otherwise - are by the [impelling] power of the senses of action and perception automatically the result. His mind is exactly like an independent, uncontrolled elephant. The result is that the one remains in the material world to enjoy and suffer pleasures and pains due to material activity. Because the mind is absorbed in desires for pious and impious activities, it is naturally subjected to the transformations of lust and anger. In this way, it becomes attracted to sense enjoyment. There are eleven senses and five material elements, and out of these sixteen items, the mind is the chief. Therefore the mind cut loose wanders around with many names manifesting itself in different physical appearances of a higher or lower quality.Brought forth by the illusory of matter which envelops the original living being, the mind creates for itself the vicious circle ,the false order, of material actions and reactions [karma] impelled by happiness or distress,and in that way deceives him into the wheel of conditioning.The mind makes the one within this material world wander through different species of life, and thus he experiences mundane affairs in different forms as a human being, demigod, fat person, skinny person and so forth. Learned Ones say that bodily appearance, bondage and liberation are caused by the mind.When the mind becomes absorbed in the senses, it brings about his conditioned life and suffering. However, when the mind becomes unattached to material enjoyment, it becomes the cause of liberation. When the flame in a lamp burns the wick improperly, the lamp is blackened, but when the lamp is filled with ghee and is burning properly, there is bright illumination. Similarly, when the mind is absorbed in sense gratification, it causes suffering, and when detached from sense gratification it brings about the original brightness of the Self.There are five working senses and five knowledge-acquiring senses. There is also the false ego. In this way, there are eleven items for the mind's functions. O hero, the objects of the senses [such as sound and touch], the organic activities [such as evacuation] and the different types of bodies, society, friendship and personality are considered by learned scholars the fields of activity for the functions of the mind.Smell, form, touch, taste and hearing [the knowing senses]; evacuation, sexual intercourse, movement, speech and manual control [the senses of action] with the eleventh element of accepting the idea of 'mine', thus gives the 'I' [or ego-awareness] to this body of which some have said that it is the twelfth element.These eleven engagements of the mind are by the material elements, by nature itself, by culture, by the karma and by time modified into the many hundreds, thousands and millions. But all these transformations do not take place automatically by mutual combination. Rather, they are under the direction of the Knower of the field.The individual soul has many ideas and activities created in the mind by the external energy. They have been existing from time immemorial. Sometimes they are manifest in the wakening state and in the dream state, but during deep sleep or trance, they disappear. A person who is liberated in this life can see all these things vividly.

The Witness and the Knower is the All-pervading cause of creation. He is full in Himself and is not dependent on others. He is perceived by hearing and direct perception. He is self-effulgent and does not experience birth, death, old age or disease. He is the controller of all the demigods, beginning with Lord Brahma. He is called Narayaṇa, and He is the shelter of living entities after the annihilation of this material world. He is full of all opulences, and He is the resting place of everything material. He is therefore known as Vasudeva, the Supreme. By His own potency, He is present within the hearts of all living entities, just as the air or vital force is within the bodies of all beings, moving and nonmoving. In this way He controls the body.

My dear King Rahugaṇa, as long as the one accepts the material body and is not freed from the material enjoyment, and as long as he does not conquer his six enemies and come to the awakening of his spiritual knowledge, he has to wander among different places and different species of life in this material world.The mind is the cause of all tribulations in the material world. As long as this fact is unknown to the one, he has to accept the miserable condition of the material body and wander within this universe. Because the mind is affected by disease, lamentation, illusion, attachment, greed and enmity, it creates bondage and a false sense of intimacy within this material world.This uncontrolled mind is the greatest enemy of the living entity. If one neglects it or gives it a chance, it will grow more and more powerful and will become victorious. Although it is not factual, it is very strong. He who free from illusion applies the weapon of worshiping the lotus feet of the spiritual teacher and the Lord, conquers the falsehood of the personal interest that has covered the soul.

Gargamuni said: This child, the son of Rohinī, will give all happiness to His relatives and friends by His qualities. Therefore He will be known as Rama. And because He will manifest extraordinary bodily strength, He will also be known as Bala. Moreover, because of not being separated from you He will be known as Sankarshana,the Unifier.Your son Krishna appears as an incarnation in every millennium. He has according to the yuga accepted forms with a white, a red or a yellow color. Now He is Krishna,of a dark complexion. This child previously was born somewhere else as the son of Vasudeva and therefore the ones who know this will speak about this child of yours as the glorious Vasudeva.There are many names and forms according to the qualities and activities of His appearances. These are known to me, but the common people do not know them. Being a Nanda-Gokula cowherd this child will always act to what is most beneficial to all of you. With His support you will easily overcome all dangers.

Oh King of Vraja, in the past, when there was a faulty regime, He has protected pious souls who were disturbed by rogues so that they, with those bad elements defeated, could flourish. Just like the ones faithful to Vishnu have nothing to fear from the Asuras, those who are as fortunate to associate with this child in love and affection, will not be overcome by enemies.Therefore, oh Nanda, take the greatest care raising this child. As for His qualities, oppulences, name and fame this son of yours is Narayana Himself!Suka said: 'After Garga thus fully had informed them about the Supreme Soul ,the way He had manifested in the form of the two boys, and had left for his place, Nanda, being blessed with all good fortune, considered himself most happy.Shortly thereafter Rama and Kesava were crawling around in Gokula on their hands and knees enjoying their childhood. When Krishna and Balarama, with the strength of Their legs, crawled in the muddy places in Vraja, Their crawling resembled the crawling of serpents, and the sound of Their ankle bells was very charming. Very much pleased by the sound of other people's ankle bells, They used to follow these people as if going to Their mothers, but when They saw that these were other people, They became afraid and returned to Their real mothers, Yasoda and Rohini.From within their houses watching the children play outside in Vraja, they laughed and forgot their household being amused to see how the two boys caught the ends of the calves' tails and were dragged around by them.

When mother Yaśodā and Rohinī were unable to protect the babies from calamities threatened by horned cows, by fire, by animals with claws and teeth such as monkeys, dogs and cats, and by thorns, swords and other weapons on the ground, they were always in anxiety, and their household engagements were disturbed. At that time, they were fully equipoised in the transcendental ecstasy known as the distress of material affection, for this was aroused within their minds. O King Parikshit, within a very short time both Rāma and Krishna began to walk very easily in Gokula on Their legs, by Their own strength, without the need to crawl.The Supreme Lord together with Balarama playing with the other kids in Vraja then awakened a heavenly bliss in the ladies of Vraja.The gopis who with their eyes on Krishna were eager just to hear time and again about His childish pranks, assembled in the presence of His mother and said:"Our dear friend Yasoda, your son sometimes comes to our houses before the milking of the cows and releases the calves, and when the master of the house becomes angry, your son merely smiles. Sometimes He devises some process by which He steals palatable curd, butter and milk, which He then eats and drinks. When the monkeys assemble, He divides it with them, and when the monkeys have their bellies so full that they won't take more, He breaks the pots. Sometimes, if He gets no opportunity to steal butter or milk from a house, He will be angry at the householders, and for His revenge He will agitate the small children by pinching them. Then, when the children begin crying, Krishna will go away."When the milk and curd are kept high on a swing hanging from the ceiling and Krishna and Balarama cannot reach it, They arrange to reach it by piling up various planks and turning upside down the mortar for grinding spices. Being quite aware of the contents of a pot, They pick holes in it. While the elderly gopis go about their household affairs, Krishna and Balarama sometimes go into a dark room, brightening the place with the valuable jewels and ornaments on Their bodies and taking advantage of this light by stealing.

"When Krishna is caught in His naughty activities, the master of the house will say to Him, 'Oh, You are a thief,' and artificially express anger at Krishna. Krishna will then reply, 'I am not a thief. You are a thief.' But now, our dear friend Yasoda, this expert thief is sitting before you like a very good boy." Sometimes all the gopis would look at Krishna sitting there, His eyes fearful so that His mother would not chastise Him, and when they saw Krishna's beautiful face, instead of chastising Him they would simply look upon His face and enjoy transcendental bliss. Mother Yasoda would mildly smile at all this fun, and she would not want to chastise her blessed transcendental child.One day while Krishna was playing with His small playmates, including Balarāma and other sons of the gopas, all His friends came together and lodged a complaint to mother Yasoda. "Mother," they submitted, "Krishna has eaten earth."Upon hearing this from Krishna's playmates, mother Yasoda, who was always full of anxiety over Krishna's welfare, picked Krishna up with her hands to look into His mouth and chastise Him. Her eyes fearful, she spoke to her son as follows.Dear Krishna, why are You so restless that You have eaten dirt in a solitary place? This complaint has been lodged against You by all Your playmates, including Your elder brother, Balarama. How is this? 'Not true at all mommy, I did not eat any dirt. If you think it is true, then look right here into My mouth!''Is that so? Then open wide!' she told Him and He, the Supreme Personality, the Lord whose oppulences are unlimited, in His pastime of acting like a human child opened His mouth. Within His mouth she saw the entire universe with all beings moving and not moving, the sky in all directions, the mountains, the continents, the oceans, the surface of the earth, the blowing wind, the fire, the moon and the stars. She saw the planetary systems, the waters, the light, the firmament with all of outer space and all divinities bound to change, the senses, the mind and the three modes. Seeing that diversity along with the time of living of each soul, the natural instincts, the karma, all that is desired, the different subtle bodies as also Vraja and herself within in the wide open mouth of her son's body, she was struck with disbelief:

'Is this all a dream, a divine phantasmagoria or maybe a delusion of my own intelligence, or would that what I so see differently be some yogic phenomenon natural to my child? Let me therefore surrender at the feet of Him beyond my range of vision,who is beyond the conception of human speculation, the mind, activities, words and arguments, who is the original cause of this cosmic manifestation, by whom the entire cosmos is maintained, and by whom we can conceive of its existence. and under whose control I live and may return home. It is by the influence of the Supreme Lord's maya that I am wrongly thinking that Nanda Maharaja is my husband, that Krishna is my son, and that because I am the queen of Nanda Maharaja, all the wealth of cows and calves are my possessions and all the cowherd men and their wives are my subjects. Actually, I also am eternally subordinate to the Supreme Lord. He is my ultimate shelter. Mother Yasoda, by the grace of the Lord, could understand the real truth. But then again, the supreme master, by the influence of the internal potency, yogamaya, inspired her to become absorbed in intense maternal affection for her son.Immediately forgetting yogamaya's illusion that Krishna had shown the universal form within His mouth, mother Yasoda took her son on her lap as before, feeling increased affection in her heart for her transcendental child.The Lord is glorified in all His greatness with the help of the three Vedas, with philosophical exercises,the Upanishads, with yogic analysis [sankhya-yoga] and with other devoted literatures, but she simply thought about Him as being her son.'

The honorable king said: 'Oh brahmin, what were the pious activities performed by Nanda and Yasoda from whose breast the Lord drank His milk? How did they achieve the highest perfection of such a blessing?Not even His own father and mother could enjoy the magnanimous activities of the young Krishna who eradicates the impurities of the world, actions that even today are glorified by the transcendentalists!'Suka said: 'Drona, the best of the demigods,the Vasus, determined to carry out the orders of Lord Brahma, together with his wife Dhara said the following to him:'May we being born on this earth be devoted to the Supreme Godhead, the Master of the Entire Universe, the Lord who is the ultimate goal under whose care one can easily avoid a miserable life.''So be it' was the answer given by Brahma. Drona thereupon took his birth in Vraja and became the Great One,the Bhagavan, the highly distinguished and celebrated Nanda and she, Dhara, appeared as Yasoda.

Thereafter, O Maharaja Parikshit, best of the Bharatas, when the Supreme Lord became the son of Nanda Maharaja and Yasoda, they maintained continuous, unswerving love. And in their association, all the other inhabitants of Vrindavana, the gopas and gopis, developed the love for Krishna. Thus the Supreme One, Krishna, along with Balarama, lived in Vrajabhumi, Vrindavana, just to substantiate the benediction of Brahma. By exhibiting different pastimes in His childhood, He increased the pleasure of Nanda and the other inhabitants of Vrindavana.

In that place where one finds the great devotees, the broad-minded pure souls whose consciousness is bent on the regular reciting of and hearing about the qualities of the Supreme Lord,the killer of Madhu,in that place if one gets a chance to drink the countless streams of nectar of these Saintly Souls,which is like the flow of the river,he will never get enough of it.Hunger, thirst, fear, lamentation or illusion never touch the ones who are eager to listen.

It is only with reference to the actions of the gunas, not to My essential nature, that I am said to be in bondage or Liberation. And as the gunas are rooted in illusion, there can be neither true bondage nor true Liberation for Me, but only a dream-like apprehension of them. Even transmigration is unreal. You may compare the two entities, one in bondage and the other in Liberation, in one and the same individual to two birds alike in nature living in companionship in the same nest on a peepul tree. One of them plucks and eats the fruits of the tree, whilst the other, though remaining unfed, is superior to it in strength. The latter is aware of itself as well as of the other, and is free from desire, whereas the former is not aware of its companion and has always been bound by desire (on account of this unawareness).The man of vidya (knowledge of Truth, i.e., the regenerate) though he has a body, is not conditioned by it, any more than a dreamer just awakened from the dream is conditioned by his dream body; and when he apprehends objects through the sensory organs, he knows that he is not doing so. The man of avidya (the unregenerate), on the contrary, remains in the illusion that he is the doer of his actions, which are actually done by the Indriyas (organs of actions and perceptions). He who comprehends this will lose interest in all perceived objects as well as in all actions, remaining free like the ether. He is really free and wise who remains unaffected though his senses feed on objects of sense. He is really free and wise whose mind, heart, senses and breath function without his thinking of them. He is really free and wise who does not show annoyance when he is subjected to afflictions and disrespect, nor pleasure when he is treated with respect. The sage who has transcended the diversity does not distinguish good from evil, merits from demerits, and, therefore, he neither praises nor condemns anything.He who is well versed in the Vedas, but has not realised the Supreme Brahman is like him who tends a dry cow. He who has cured himself from the disease of perceiving diversity in the souls and has concentrated his mind on Me, should abstain completely from action. He who is unable to fix his mind on the Perfect Brahman will do well to do his prescribed duties with complete dispassion. Occupying the mind with Myself My births and deeds, and observing for My delight all the duties relating to dharma, kama and artha, and relying wholly on Me, he will develop unswerving devotion to Me, O Uddhava. By associating with saints he will surely attain to Me.